Since the 1948 war which drove them from their heartland, the Palestinian people have consistently been denied the most basic democratic rights. Blaming the Victims shows how the historical fate of the Palestinians has been justified by spurious academic attempts to dismiss their claim to a home within the boundaries of historical Palestine and even to deny their very existence.

Beginning with a thorough exposé of the fraudulent assertions of Joan Peters concerning the indigenous inhabitants of Palestine prior to 1948, the book then turns to similar instances in Middle East research where the truth about the Palestinians has been systematically suppressed: from the bogus—though still widely believed—explanations of why so many Palestinians fled their homes in 1948, to today’s distorted propaganda about PLO terrorism. The volume also includes sharp critiques of the wide consensus in the USA which supports Israel and its territorial ambitions while maintaining total silence about the competing reality of the Palestinians.

Descriptions du produit

Revue de presse

“The wide-ranging scope and demythologising structure of Blaming the Victims makes it especially relevant at the present time when the actions of the state of Israel seem to contradict received opinion as to its nature. The book provides a great quantity of information, analyses it convincingly and, through an impressive body of notes on primary and secondary literature, points the reader in the direction of further information.”—Middle East International

“These forcefully argued treatises will be as enlightening as they are disturbing for anyone with an interest in Middle East politics.”—ALA Booklist

Présentation de l'éditeur

Since the 1948 war which drove them from their heartland, the Palestinian people have consistently been denied the most basic democratic rights. Blaming the Victims shows how the historical fate of the Palestinians has been justified by spurious academic attempts to dismiss their claim to a home within the boundaries of historical Palestine and even to deny their very existence.

Beginning with a thorough exposé of the fraudulent assertions of Joan Peters concerning the indigenous inhabitants of Palestine prior to 1948, the book then turns to similar instances in Middle East research where the truth about the Palestinians has been systematically suppressed: from the bogus—though still widely believed—explanations of why so many Palestinians fled their homes in 1948, to today’s distorted propaganda about PLO terrorism. The volume also includes sharp critiques of the wide consensus in the USA which supports Israel and its territorial ambitions while maintaining total silence about the competing reality of the Palestinians.

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39 internautes sur 54 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile

Recommended23 mai 2006

Par
David Kamper
- Publié sur Amazon.com

Format: Broché

This collection of essays draws from a wealth of scholars to support the existence of Palestine before and after the rise of Zionism. The authors therein never once resort to the name-calling tactics of Zionist supporters, but rather intelligently dissect the Zionist agenda and put it to shame as the bigoted movement it is.

57 internautes sur 80 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile

Refuting the false scholarship of hate29 juillet 2005

Par
Dan Willard
- Publié sur Amazon.com

Format: Broché

This is an excellent book. Edward Said, in a collection of material, demolishes the scholarship of hate as practiced in Israel. That scholarship reached its absurd peak when Israelis started writing books to prove that Palestinians simply didn't exist and were never a majority in what is now Israel and occupied territories. What Said misses is that in the end, the stupidity and basic lie of the scholarship has only led to damage the Israeli cause internationally. In essence, its a self-destructive activity. The only consumers of it being Bible Belt Christians Conservatives in the rural and southern united states and at best the fringe of the right wing in Israel.

Do what they might, they can't undo the basic reality that the first census conducted after the creation of palestine showed a population of over 600,000 non-jews and 83,000 jews. And every other census before and after shows a stable and growing palestinian population over time. So what can they do when the basic facts are so firmly against their claims? They go to "scholarly works" like the travel accounts of Mark Twain to prove that the land was utterly empty until they arrived.

The true reason for all this scholarship in the end is to justify Israel's actions in expelling palestinians by force in 1948 during the war. Its well documented that in 1948 that even the villages the palestinians had lived in were erased with dynamite so that no trace of the homes of those who had lived in what is now Israel for centuries would remain.

The other purpose behind the scholarship is to prepare Israel mentally to accept the preferred solutions of the far right to the problem of palestinians. That solution is "transfer". Rounding them up in trucks and pushing them over the border into other countries. To prepare people for that step, its necessary to have a record of scholarship to "prove" that these people have no association with Israel and are just arab migrants who can be dumped anywhere.

From the book, its possible to learn the worst of the Israeli scholars like Joan Peters. Its then possible by looking at how seriously the scholarly fraud written by Joan Peters is treated to seperate out real Israeli historians with credibility from those who are unethical political operatives.

The problem of recognition of the reality of both Israel and Palestinians is core to peace. As palestinians had to accept Israel's existance, that there was no going back to 1947, so too must israelis discard the nonsense scholarship produced that aims to prove that Palestinians are not a people, have no history and do not exist.

Reality isn't to be found in the census of 1830, reality is that there is a large population of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza today that Israel can neither expell nor absorb. Everyone knows what the solution is going to be and its going to be international compensation for Palestinian refugees for their losses and an independent state of Palestine in the occupied territories.

24 internautes sur 33 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile

comprehensive12 octobre 2009

Par
J. ABDO
- Publié sur Amazon.com

Format: Broché

This is an excellent and must read on the conflict, but it is very academic, I should warn you. It reads like a textbook rather than human interest, so it is hard to get into, but it is worth the trouble.

This is a great explanation of the often neglected Palestinian point of view. The Israeli position is always well supported, understood and explained in our media and government; you will be a step ahead of the majority by reading this book since you will know both sides.

In a world where criticism of Israel = anti-Semitism, you have to do yourself a favor and read this book!

2 internautes sur 3 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile

very important book, shows just how big business and political parties play the voting public like a puppet8 juin 2014

Par
janet vickers
- Publié sur Amazon.com

Format: Broché
Achat vérifié

I chose this rating because I felt this book should be read by anyone interested in politics or international affairs. It was factual and explained in detail how people have been deceived by the media and governments. The language is fairly heavy going but well worth struggling through and one can get the main meaning of the sentiments expressed in this book. This book is for anyone who wants to know the truth and feels that being part of a democracy means representation of the individual and not a plutocracy where the voice of the people is ignored. The Palestinians have endured much oppression because of ignorant policies and people should know the truth. Christopher Hitchens to my knowledge has never put his name to anything that is not true. World leaders should read this book.

11 internautes sur 17 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile

A bit soft on Israel, but otherwise a fine piece of literature31 mai 2011

Par
J W Sachs
- Publié sur Amazon.com

Format: Broché

Edward Said, known for his ability to provide clarity to the heavily distorted pro-Israel perspective out of the U.S., presents solid arguments on the Israel-Palestine issue. Said and Hitchens expose unacademic "pop" critics such as Thomas Friedman as those who write to inflame prejudice and hatred against the Palestinians, rather than make any effort to provide well-researched information on the complexities of the issue. A must read for anyone who can accept the fact that the powerful Jewish influence on the U.S. media has resulted in a loss of some of its journalistic objectivity and integrity.